'Three-person IVF' moves closer

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19 January 2012 Last updated at 12:59 GMT Almost all cells have mitochondria - shown here in green Public opinion will help decide the future of a controversial genetic technique to stop serious conditions being passed from mother to child.

It replaces defective genetic material in the egg in order to eliminate rare mitochondrial diseases.

After the consultation into "three-person IVF", ministers will decide whether to allow it in patients.

A £5.8m centre at Newcastle University, funded by the Wellcome Trust, will investigate the technique's safety.

Inherited defects

Mitochondria can be found within almost every human cell, and provide the energy they need to function.

Like the nucleus of the cell, they contain DNA, although in tiny quantities.

Approximately 1 in 5,000 babies is born with inherited defects in their mitochondrial DNA, the effects of which can be very severe, or even fatal, depending on which cells are affected.

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Every year we see hundreds of patients whose lives are seriously affected by mitochondrial disease.”

End Quote Prof Doug Turnbull, Newcastle University Scientists believe they have found a way to substitute the defective mitochondria and hopefully prevent the child from developing a disease.

They take two eggs, one from the mother and another from a donor.

The nucleus of the donor egg is removed, leaving the rest of the egg contents, including the mitochondria, and is replaced with the nucleus from the mother's egg.

The resulting embryo has properly functioning mitochondria from the donor, and should, in theory, be healthy.

This replacement is like replacing a battery and therefore has no impact on the DNA that determines other factors, such as appearance.

Even though the child would have a very limited genetic contribution from the third person, there is still opposition from some groups, who say such genetic manipulation carries risks.

Currently, a change in the law would be needed before it could be offered to patients.

'Vital that we listen'

Announcing the consultation, David Willetts, minister for universities and science, said: "Scientists have made an important and potentially life-saving discovery in the prevention of mitochondrial disease.

"However, as with all developments in cutting-edge science, it is vital that we to listen to the public's views before we consider any change in the law allowing it to be used."

It is hoped the consultation will be complete by the end of this year.

Sir Mark Walport, from the Wellcome Trust, said the technique might prevent previously incurable diseases.

"We welcome the opportunity to discuss with the public why we believe this technique is essential if we are to give families affected by these diseases the chance to have healthy children, something most of us take for granted."

Prof Doug Turnbull, from Newcastle University, added: "Every year we see hundreds of patients whose lives are seriously affected by mitochondrial disease.

"We want to make a major difference to the lives of these patients."

Groups representing patients and their families also welcomed the announcement.

Alastair Kent, from Genetic Alliance UK, said that the impact of mitochondrial disease could be "devastating".

He said: "It will be quite a long time before this is available as a clinical service, and our primary concern is to make sure the technique is safe.

"But it would be sensible and reasonable to offer it to prevent these conditions."

Source BBC

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Big Solar Project Moves Forward Without Uncle Sam

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Lend Lease

SolarCity has received financing from Bank of America Merrill Lynch to install solar electricity systems on houses on military bases, like one here at Soaring Heights Communities at Davis Monthan Air Force Base outside Tucson, Ariz.

We've heard a lot about Solyndra, a solar panel maker that went bankrupt despite lots of federal subsidies. But on Wednesday, a solar installation company and one of the country's biggest banks announced a billion-dollar project to put solar systems on the roofs of military housing. And they're doing it without the kind of federal help Solyndra got.

When SolarCity CEO Lyndon Rive came up with a plan to put solar on the rooftops of military housing around the country, he was sure he'd need federal backing to get loans for such a big project.

But after his company and the Department of Energy missed a deadline to get that help, SolarCity and its lender, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, didn't give up.

Now they're announcing a deal to install solar systems on up to 120,000 military homes.

"It will be the largest residential deployment of solar in American history," says Rive.

The deal signals that companies are finally finding a way around what has long been one of the biggest obstacles to broader adoption of solar power — inadequate financing.

"There really weren't a lot of financing tools available, so it was done one rooftop at a time," said Jonathan Plowe, who heads up the new energy team at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

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Workers install solar panels at the Soaring Heights Communities at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base outside Tucson, Ariz.

Lend Lease Workers install solar panels at the Soaring Heights Communities at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base outside Tucson, Ariz.

He says the real breakthrough represented by his company's agreement with SolarCity is that it puts long-term financing in place for so many installations. It's the first time a project of this scale has been launched without federal loan guarantees. That's when the government lowers the risk for lenders by basically co-signing the loans.

Even without loan guarantees, solar projects still get tax credits and other subsidies.

Plowe says there's lots of demand for rooftop solar, so his Bank of America team plans to do more of these projects.

"As the costs of the systems continue to come down and the cost of the capital continues to come down, the industry will be able to continue to grow," says Plowe.

Bank of America will provide up to $350 million, so SolarCity will need to attract additional investors for what it hopes will be a $1 billion project.

'Economies Of Scale'

SolarCity will install and own the solar systems and sell the electricity to the private companies that manage military housing at a discount of about 10 percent compared with utility prices, according to the company.

It's a business model that now dominates the solar industry. The lender gained confidence that SolarCity was a good bet because of the work it had done on earlier projects.

The company installed solar systems at Davis-Monthan Air Force base in Tucson, Ariz., and it is working on a project at the joint Navy-Air Force Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam near Honolulu.

Rive says by installing lots of solar panels in one area, the company has shown it can save money and turn solar power into a reliable business.

"It worked extremely well. It also allowed us as a company to get economies of scale on a concentrated area," Rive said. "There's a lot of inefficiencies when you have to go back and forth to different homes in different communities."

Lend Lease, the company that manages the housing at both bases, says it's saving lots of money that it can use to build more housing and update existing units.

Lend Lease manages 40,000 housing units at 21 military bases around the country. It's planning to do more solar projects, including some with SolarCity.

"They've demonstrated that they can get extremely competitive pricing for solar. So who wouldn't do it if you could save money and you could get the green benefits of doing that?" says Simon Muir, a vice president of Lend Lease.

The solar installation industry in the U.S. has doubled in each of the past two years, according to Rhone Resch, who heads the Solar Energy Industries Association.

"The fact that SolarCity is now able to attract money, I think, really demonstrates how mainstream solar has become, how confident investors are in both the technology, its performance and its returns," Resch says.

Solar still only provides a tiny portion of U.S. electricity, and it has not yet taken off as a major electricity source.

But Mark Bachman, an analyst specializing in the solar industry for the investment banking firm Avian Securities, is more cautious.

"I think it's gaining momentum. I wouldn't call it a breakthrough time in the U.S.," he says.

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